SVTFOE and Starco Shorts and Songs
by lazersfanfics
Summary: A series of short svtfoe/starco fanfics along with songs I really like.
1. Intro

**Lazer here with important news. After realizing how much I do these short fanfics with titles named after songs I've been listening to, I decided to make this series full of svtfoe/starco shorts, with songs I really like and match the story. Links don't work on fanfiction for some reason, doe, but I'll put up the title and artist, just so you guys can get a feel on the awesome music I listen too.**

 **So I hope you enjoy them! They might be weekly, for all I know.**


	2. Here Comes the Night

[ song used for short: DJ Snake - Here Comes the Night (feat. Mr Hudson) ]

[ episode based off short: Camping Trip ]

Nighttime fell in the forest sky, as Star and Marco sat together near a campfire, roasting weiners and marshmallows for them to eat. On the other hand, Mr. and Mrs. Diaz were painting countless portraits of King Butterfly after his incident with Old Youthful.

Despite Star's dad coming out of nowhere, Marco was glad with the way this camping trip turned out to be. There was no doubt in his mind that her wild and crazy attitude had came from her father. And yet, she's shown him all kinds of amazing stuff he never knew existed. So maybe, just maybe, this camping trip was good payback to everything she's done for him.

He had questions concerning River Butterfly, however. How did he crash into Earth wearing nothing but underwear? And how did he get the idea of him being his daughter's boyfriend? Sure, they hang out all the dang time, but they never were dating. He tried hard not to think about all of that crazy nonsense, but it hurts him not to be curious about it. Especially about River blabbering about him being too old and Star calming him down by saying that she'll still need him. Sooner or later, she has to rule the kingdom of Mewni, and he knows she has to leave him. Yet, he thought that maybe she was the light in her eyes, because everything looks so old and tired when she leave his side.

Marco stopped thinking once the marshmallows and weiners were finished roasting. Star made a couple s'mores for the two of them, while he made a few hot dogs for the whole family. Some of the dogs had ketchup, some had mustard, and others had both ketchup and mustard on them. Marco ate the ones with ketchup, while Star ate the ones with mustard and ate it with the s'mores.

After eating for a while, Star said to Marco, "Thanks for this super awesome camping trip day, Marco."

"Don't mention it," he replied with food in his mouth. "It's the least I can do."

"I'd also like to apologize to my dad. I seriously don't know what was up with him, but it could've been worse, for all we know."

"Again, don't mention it. I've dealt with your crazy, so seeing your father act like this wasn't really new to me."

"Heh. I guess you're right."

Marco took a s'more Star made and ate it. Meanwhile, Mrs. Diaz walked to the campfire to see the two of them.

"So, you kids had fun on the camping trip today?" she asked them.

"Yes we did!" both answered.

"I loved the time when we went fishing and Old Youthful was so beautiful to watch!" Star added in excitement.

"I'm glad you two enjoyed it," Mrs. Diaz responded.

"Yeah, we should totally do it again sometime," Star said.

"Hopefully, with less crazy and more fishing," Marco added with a smile. "The only thing I reeled is Star's dad beating up his foot."

Mrs. Diaz giggled and said to her son, "Don't worry, Marco. You'll catch fish next time we come here and not Star's dad."

Star, Marco, and Mrs. Diaz ended up eating nearly all the food, leaving about 2-3 hot dogs and 1 s'more left for King Butterfly and Mr. Diaz. While they ate, however, they gazed upon the stars and forest, admiring its gracious beauty nature has to offer.

"You know, Star," Marco asked, "people on Earth would always tell campfire stories late at night."

"Really?" Star answered in excitement.

"Yeah, you got any good stories?"

"I may have some to share."


	3. Sweater Weather

( song used for short: The Neighbourhood - Sweater Weather )

Star lied on the floor of her room, staring at the high ceiling. She had no clue why, nor she had any clue on what to do today. That was soon to change once Marco entered her room with a basket of laundry.

"Hey, Star," Marco said once he entered.

"Hey, Marco," she replied.

"I got laundry. Where do you want it?"

"Anywhere's fine."

He placed the basket near the door to the secrets closet and walked away. Curiously, she got off the floor and walked to where he placed it. Something was strange. It wasn't her usual dresses she would wear, but it was a bunch of red hoodies instead. All next to her secrets closet, too.

"Hey, Marco?" Star questioned.

Marco walked to her door and asked, "Yeah?"

"These aren't mines. They're just your red hoodies."

"Yeah... I know that."

She raised her eyebrow. "So... why did you bring them here?"

"Because it's too cold?"

She knew how nervous Marco was. He wasn't even trying to hide it.

He took a deep breath and said, "I just wanted you to have some of my hoodies."

"Marcoooooo," Star responded with small blushes. "That's really nice of you, but you really didn't have to."

"No, it's fine. I really want you to have them."

"It's really sweet of you, but really, there's no need."

"I insist, Star. I want you to have these hoodies.

He opened the door to her secrets closet and gave the basket a little push inside.

"See, you can even keep them in your secrets closet."

"You know what? I was thinking about cleaning that up today. Thanks for reminding me, Marco!"

Star tried to move the hoodies away from the closet, but Marco stopped her from doing so.

"Star, please," he told her. "The hoodies are yours to keep!"

"And I totally understand that," she said, "but I got some business to handle, so-"

"Star, other than your journal and my beard explosion, you ain't got much in there."

"Really?"

"Just keep them, Star. Please?"

She was torn and confused. Does she keep them or does she not? It was a nice and surprising gift she got from him, but what does this mean for them? She didn't want to overthink it, and she was certain he didn't want to overthink it either. She had no choice but to accept it.

"Well, if this is what you want," she said to him, "then I humbly accept your hoodies."

"Awesome," he answered with a smile.

"In fact, I think I'll wear one right now."

Star took a hoodie from the basket and proceeded to wear it. Her actions made Marco blush red. He shouldn't be surprised, since it was his idea in the first place, but now he can't take his eyes off her.

"I've always wonder what these pockets are for," she asked. "They have some sort of magic?"

"No, they just make your hands warm," he responded.

"Is that so? Like, fire hands?"

"As cool as it may sound, no."

Although she was a bit disappointed, she couldn't care less. Suddenly, Marco walked towards her back and held both her hands and placed them in the pockets of the hoodie. Both had no idea why it happened, but they went with it anyway. Yet, they looked at each other with widened eyes and red cheeks.

After a while, they stopped what they were doing and laughed for a bit. Marco carried the basket of red hoodies, while Star scratched her head and bit her wand.

"Well," he said, smiling, "I'm gonna go bring this inside your secrets closet now."

"Ok, you do that," she answered, still wearing the red hoodie.


	4. Only U

( song used for short: PARTYNEXTDOOR - Only U )

Midnight struck on the Diaz household. Marco felt restless tonight, so he decided to go downstairs to grab a drink, in hopes that it'll put him to sleep. Little did he know, once he got downstairs, he would see Star lying on the living room couch, trying to catch some zzzs.

Confused, he asked, "Star? Why are you here?"

Star looked towards him and replied, "Oh, hey Marco. I couldn't get sleep in my room, so I thought sleeping on the couch would help."

"Oh, ok then."

"What about you, Marco? How come you're awake?"

"Getting me a drink so I can go back to sleep."

"Sounds good."

He walked to the kitchen fridge and grabbed himself a lemon-lime soda can. He would then walk back to the living room and sit on the floor next to the couch. Half asleep, Star didn't realize he was next to him until she awoke from the sounds of a soda can opening.

"You're gonna drink your soda down here?" she questioned.

"Well, yeah," he responded. "I thought you could use a little comfort while you're down here."

"Oh, that's nice," she said, yawning.

As Marco drank his soda, she felt bothered by his presence. It felt wrong, considering that it was the first time she felt like this since the sandwich incident, but this time, she felt more upset than mad. And what makes it worse is that he's completely oblivious about it.

"Didn't think you wanted to comfort me," she mumbled as she turned to the other side of the couch.

"Huh?" he asked after taking a sip.

She didn't replied back, as she pretended to fall asleep. Knowing this, he stood up from off the floor and tapped her gently a couple times.

"Star, I know you can still hear me," he told her. "Is there something that's infuriating to you?"

Waking up from her fake sleep, she turned towards him and answered, "You. You're infuriating."

"Me? I only wanted to stay with you."

"Yeah, you finally wanted to stay with me."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"You mean to tell me you don't know? You finally got to date Jackie Lynn Thomas, yet you never had a chance to hang around with me like old times."

"I-Is that why you've been so upset?"

"Yes, idiot! I helped you so much with getting the girl of your dreams, and when you two finally start dating, it felt like you left me abandoned."

"Star..."

She turned away from him once again. Tears nearly broke out from her thoughts on him. Feeling super guilty from the situation, he tried to make her face towards him again.

"I know you've loved her ever since you were a kid and all that," Star said to Marco, holding on tight to her blanket, "but you've been gone for far too long, and it feels like you don't want me anymore. I miss you. I miss us."

"Star, if I didn't want you anymore, I would've let you go," he said to her as she turned towards him once again. "I would 100% let you know."

"I wouldn't know. Feels like you would want to hang out with Jackie more than you do with me."

"Stop, Star. Just stop the confusion. You know we've been on wild adventures together."

"Well, that was then. It doesn't even happen anymore."

"Please, Star..."

Star turned away from Marco once again, but this time, she covered herself with her blanket. Marco tried to remove the blanket away from her, but she wouldn't budge.

"When I was with you, Marco," she said covered in her blanket, "I started to grow feelings for you. It might be a little weird, but I think I like you, Marco. I am in love with you and it's only you."

"A-are you serious?" he responded with blushing red cheeks.

"Yeah, I'm serious. But it doesn't seem to matter now. You're already with the girl of your dreams."

"Star, please look at me. I need to see you right now.

Hesitant with her decision, she did what she was told and got out from her blanket cover.

"Even if I'm with Jackie, it's still gonna be you and I having fun. There's still gonna be us, I promise you."

"Is it really, Marco? Did you mean it when you said that?"

"Yes, Star. I need you to stop with the accusations. My love for you is real life.

Star decided to stand up from the couch, after hearing those kindful words from Marco. A tear ran down from her heart cheek, but he wiped it right off.

"Nobody's gonna catch my eye, Star. It's only you an I."

"Thank you, Marco."

"Don't mention it. Just know it's only you on my mi-"

Before he could finish his sentence, she quickly wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a kiss. He was truly shocked and awed; his cheeks turned completely red, and his pupils got extremely small. Once they finished their short and surprising kiss, she felt the same way Marco did. With everything that they've been through, none of them expected this moment to happen.

Nervously, Star told him, "My gosh, Marco! I'm so sorry! I didn't know what gotten into me. I just got caught up, and I really meant it when I said it was only you, but I wasn't sure if you knew, because you're dating Jackie Lynn Thomas, but-"

He finally interrupted her and said, "Don't be. Because I'm not sorry either."

He then grabber her by the waist and kissed her back. A bit shocked, she wrapped her arms around his arms once again. The kiss may have been a couple seconds longer, but the both of them loved every moment from that kiss. Silence broke in right after the second kiss, but they ended up lost in their eyes, with blushing cheeks and goosebumps. Soon, Star laid back on the couch once again, while Marco grabbed his soda can off the floor and took another sip.

"Well, I think I'll finally get some sleep now," he said holding his drink.

"Yeah, same here," she answered.

"Goodnight, Star. I'll see you in the morning."

"Night night, Marco."

He walked upstairs to his room, more sips on his soda in the way up. Meanwhile, Star wrapped herself in her blanket as she stared into the ceiling.

"If only I knew what just happened," she said to herself.


	5. Ivy

( song used for short: Frank Ocean - Ivy )

Marco lied on his bed, mad and upset. For how long, he was unsure. He dealt with Star's antics over and over again, but few times, he was completely fed up. A ripped up hoodie to save her life was completely one of those times. Of course, she was mad at him for being such an overreactive spaz, but he can't help but be mad for her being such a reckless force.

It's been hours since the incident. He kept on looking at the trash can filled with hoodie shreds, thinking about the things he said to her. Both of them knew she isn't a kid no more, yet nearly everything she does feels childish and he can't help but look over her like a guard dog. Still, they had a bunch of trust issues, and the guilt is starting to eat him up. All the things he didn't mean to say or do were quite regrettable. But of course, there were also things she didn't need to say, yet he felt like he deserved it.

Memories of her first day began to surface. He thought for sure it was the start of nothing new, but boy, was he wrong. He couldn't see it coming, nor did he had any chance to prepare. Nevertheless, he was extremely graceful of that day, for she changed him for better or worse. It was the greatest mystery he'd ever received.

After a long time of thought, Marco heard a knock on the door. Once he asked the person to come in, it turned out to be Star behind the door. He slowly got off his bed as Star sat right next to him. Both didn't have the feeling to look at each other, so they looked at the floor instead.

"Hey, Star," he said to her.

"Hey," she replied, depressed.

The silence was too much to break at this point. It was as if it was the glass that separated them in Ludo's then castle.

Marco said, "Look, Star... I could hate you now... and it's quite alright to hate me now... but I just want to apologize. Things got way out of hand, and I was being a huge jerk. I'm sorry."

She looked at him for a brief moment, and then it was back at the floor.

"I'm sorry too," Star responded. "I didn't mean for all this to happen, and I ended up ruining your hoodie."

"I'm... over that now. I think. I do have a lot more in the closet, so."

"Yeah, you do."

Silence swarmed the room again. However, in that brief moment of those two talking to each other, they both knew that deep down, the feeling is still good. And it felt good for that feeling to return for the both of them.

"You know, Marco," she said looking at him, "I thought that I was dreaming when you said you love me."

He chuckled and answered, "Yeah, I remember that."

"It's all good, though. I love you too."

He quickly turned to her with his cheeks blushing.

"Y-you do?"

Star kissed Marco on the cheek as an answer. They ended up staring at each other with shocked faces and bright-red cheeks right afterwards.

"Y-yeah... I mean, does that answer your question?"

Marco couldn't say anything else, but after a while, he ended up laughing. She ended up laughing too, as silence turned into joy in a matter of seconds.

Once he stopped laughing, he said to her, "That was something new, right?"

"Yeah," she answered. "But... just know I meant it when I said... that."

"I-I-I meant it too... I... meant that."

"Cool."

"Cooooooooooool."

Both of them laughed for a while again. Once the laughter ended, their stomaches both rumbled, hungry for something to eat.

"Well, I guess it's time to eat now," Star said.

"Nachos?" Marco questioned.

"Definitely."


	6. With You

[ song used for short: Drake - With You (feat. PARTYNEXTDOOR) ]

[ episode based off short: Sleepover ]

"MARCO DIAZ!" Star yelled.

She stood at the open front door, looking at Marco walking slowly upstairs. There was a certain voice she heard, but she couldn't make out on what was said.

"We'll probably get some burritos once I wake up, Star," Marco said while yawning. "I promise."

"Well, alright, then."

"Wouldn't you like some sleep too?"

"Nah, I'll be fine. Go get your zzzs."

"Ok, seeya."

He finally got into his room and slept in his bed, with the biggest grin he has ever had. On the other hand, Star sat down in the kitchen, deep in her thoughts. She kinda forgot what she said last night, but she knew she opened up to everyone, as well with everyone in the sleepover. She's really glad Marco finally showed his feelings for Jackie Lynn Thomas. Heck, she even knows Jackie feels what he feels. It was evident when they said their goodbyes to each other. And yet, something was bothering her mind.

Did her feelings really change that night?

Minutes after doing nothing but thinking in the kitchen table, she peeked inside of Marco's room. Like she's seen a couple times, he slept with his grey shirt and his skinny jeans on. He still has his grin on his face; she felt as if he had the best night of his life. Pushing the door by inches, she was hesitant as to whether or not to come in. He was extremely happy, and she wanted him to stay that way. But, learning from Janna's sneaky ways, she crawled inside the small space of his room door and got herself in.

Now closer than where she was earlier, Star stood and looked at Marco's happy face. Staring at him again got her tapping into her emotions. Now that he showed his feelings for Jackie, what would happen between them now? More importantly, what would happen between Star and Marco? It would be unreal for him to break his crush off, but if it did, what would this mean? Would it mean that he shared the same feelings for her instead of Jackie? Or would he be too heartbroken to deal with anything anymore?

Nevertheless, she cared for him, and she knew he cared for her just as much.

She thought of a plan. Using her sneaky skills she learned from Janna again, she quietly opened one of his drawers, and grabbed a few dollars out of his wallet. Then, with no logical reason, she ended up kissing him on the forehead. She was shocked with this sudden course of action, but luckily, her actions did not wake Marco up. Instead, he just turned to the other side and continued his happy sleep. With the first half of her plan fully executed, she sneaked her way out of the room.

"I'll be back," she whispered behind the door.

* * *

Hours later, Marco woke up from his slumber. He did a little stretching and yawning the moment he got off his bed. During his stretching, however, something on his night stand caught his eye. What he saw was a brown paper bag with a sticky note attached into it. Curious to know what the bag was about he took the bag.

The sticky note read, "I'm with you 3 -Star"

The note made him blush. Seeing this reminded him that he promised to get Star some breakfast burritos. Yet, this nice course of action was a great feeling for him. Especially when a breakfast burrito inside a bag with a thoughtful note was the gift he received after a wonderful night.

Marco laughed for a bit and said, "Star definitely used my money, did she?"


	7. What You Know

( song used for short: Two Door Cinema Club - What You Know )

Janna stopped by to the Diaz house once again. It's been a common thing for her ever since Star got into detention. This time, she wanted to do Star's makeup once more. After that sleepover fiasco, she spent some time trying to improve her makeup skills, in hopes to impress a certain princess from another dimension.

After spending nearly half a hour on the makeup, she asked her, "Done, princess."

Star grabbed her pocket mirror phone and shouted in glee. She noticed a major improvement with Janna's skills from the last time she did her makeup. And she couldn't be any more proud.

Calming herself down from her burst of excitement, she looked up to her and asked, "Well?"

Janna replied with a smile, "Huh?"

"How do I look?"

Janna's cheeks turned as red as the hearts of Star's cheeks. Practice makes perfect, Janna thought to herself, but damn, this was one hell of a job I did. John Keats would probably be so proud if he saw this.

"Beautiful," she said after her long pause. "I mean, I'm getting better at this makeup stuff, so… no biggie, right?"

Star leaped her hands on her shoulders and screamed, "THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, JANNA!"

"He he, yeah… no prob bob…"

"Hmmmmm, do you think Marco will think the same?"

Janna felt a sense of shock. Yet, she kinda had this coming. When she was left at the Diaz house from the time Star and Marco was at Quest Buy, she lurked into Star's secrets closet. And in her short time there, she read every single page of her journal. Even Chapter 11. Her feelings were complicated that day. Sure, her and Marco lived with other for a while now, and she's finally hanging out with her more often, but she's feels that she's really growing a crush on her. She wouldn't even care if John Keats likes her back; he's in the 18th century, for all she cares about. Still, her doubts played a factor with her relationship with Star, as does Star's crush.

"O-of course…" Janna replied with a soft tone. "Otherwise, I would totally blackmail him…"

Star giggled and answered, "You totally would. You did say you have everything about him."

"He he, that's… true…"

The two looked away from each other for a brief moment. Both wanted to say something to each other, but other things were on their minds.

Star looked back at Janna and asked, "Hey, Janna."

"Yes, princess?" she responded.

She looked down to floor, as if she wanted to avoid eye contact with her beanie friend.

"N-It's nothing. Really."

Janna felt a little disappointed. "Oh, I understand. It's all good."

"O-ok, then. We should go see what he thinks of what you've done!"

"Right after we tell him I used his money to buy the tools to your makeup."

The two shared a laugh for a brief moment as they went straight for the door.

Janna opened the door for Star and said, "After you, princess."


	8. It's Only

[ song used for short: ODESZA - It's Only (feat. Zyra) ]

Star and Janna, as well as the other degenerates, sat in silence in the detention. The mayor already fulfilled her duties, and the wrestling game got cancelled due to player complications. Due to these extreme levels of boredom, both Star and Janna sat next to each other, listening to Lana Del Rey though Janna's earphones.

Star took a deep sigh and asked, "How long is detention's gonna last, Janna?"

Janna looked at her phone and said, "A half-hour more."

"Really? Man. Can't we just go outside? I can't stand this any longer."

"I'm not really in the mood to go outside. Sorry."

"Alright, fine. I'll just look outside the window then."

"Fine by me, Mayor Butterfly."

Star removed the earphone out of her ear and stood in front of the window. Little did she know, she saw Marco outside, hanging out with someone. Someone he's been trying to date for ages now. Her friend, Marco Diaz, was finally hanging out with his crush, Jackie Lynn Thomas. It was much more than that. The two of them were actually having a conversation. Both Marco and Jackie were also laughing and holding hands together. And all of this left Star speechless.

"I don't believe it," she said out loud.

"What is it?" Janna questioned, slowly standing up from the desk. "Did something bad happen? 'Cause when that happens, it's always something exciting."

"No, it's not that."

"Oh, never mind, then."

"Janna, Marco and Jackie… are dating."

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, what?"

Janna rushed into the window Star was watching. What she saw was quite evident: Marco and Jackie hanging out like a couple. While it was unclear as to what they were talking about, it was clearly evident that they were enjoying themselves smiling and holding hands. They even kissed each other for a brief moment.

"Oh my God," Janna said. "That dude finally did it."

"I-I know that," Star responded, with her voice being a bit shaky.

"Heh, yeah… Took him long enough."

"I-I-I'm so proud of him… I really am.. It's just… I-I just don't understand… B-b-b-but…"

"Hey, Star… Are you ok? You seem to be acting different."

Star went on like this for a few more seconds. It even raised the concern from the other degenerates, as they moved slowly towards her and Janna.

"Hey, is the mayor ok, Janna?" one of the degenerates asked. "she seems… different."

"I'm not sure if I know that." Janna answered.

Star's eyes soon soon begin to change to a glowing white. She then began to float in the class, as a unpredictable storm went loose. Seats, books, and tables began to fly across the room, dealing lots and lots of damage.

Janna took action and screamed to the degenerates, "Everyone, get out now! Deputy mayor's orders! Go, go, go!"

The degenerates screamed in horror and ran out of the detention room. All but one managed to escape, as the storm managed to shut that person inside the room. Janna tried all her best to get the last degenerate out of the room, but it was no use, as the storm got crazier and crazier. Due to this, she told the degenerate to find some cover, in hopes for her to weather the storm down.

She called Star's name about a hundred times. Yet, the storm kept raging onto the classroom. It even got worse when the windows begin the crack from the debris flying around. Janna knew what was wrong. and she was the only one to fix it.

"Star, listen to me!" Janna yelled. "I know how you feel!"

Star didn't reply back. The unstable storm continues.

"I know it hurts so much, and it gets you mad because it's out of your control…"

Slowly but surely, the storm lessened its damage.

"But not even magic can change someone's feelings! Sometimes the only solution is to let go!"

The last degenerate somehow was able to get out of the detention room, leaving Star and Janna into the storm.

"You have to stop! Please! Please…"

Finally, circling debris had come to a halt, as Star returned to the ground with her eyes back to normal. She collapsed on her knees, as her thoughts slowly faded into darkness. Janna got on her knees as well, hoping to comfort her in this fully-wrecked room.

Ignoring the pain of the debris lying on the floor, she looked right at her and said, "I'm here for you, Mayor Butterfly."

Star looked at her face with tears running down her face. With her mind full of sorrows, she rushed in for a hug, crying a river onto Janna's shoulder. Knowing the pain she's suffering, Janna hugged her back as well.

During the hug, Janna looked out side the near-broken window Star was looking at earlier. After a long talk, Jackie and Marco left the area, walking and holding hands together. She thought back to the days where Janna kinda had a crush on her. She even enjoyed the days where they would hang out together, like how she and Star hanged out. But nowadays, Janna would get in detention more often than Jackie, and it caused them to spend time lesser and lesser. In the end, Janna really misses those days.

She then began to look at the heartbroken Star. Seeing her in this condition nearly broke her into tears. Instead, she thought about Marco and his bond with Star. He might be with Jackie at the moment, but she knew that deep down, he'll end up loving Star in the end. Janna can only hope that Star lets Janna love her as much as Marco does.

"Marco's a lucky guy," Janna thought to herself.


	9. All Time Low

( song used for short: Jon Bellion - All Time Low )

Marco was rotting in his room for days. He covered himself in bed sheets and never bothered to move a single inch. The whole household, Star included, took notice of his actions. He tried shaking it off by going to school, but that attempt was short-lived. His parents tried as they could, but he still shut himself out. Star even blew his door off. Crickets.

Completely fed up from his actions, Star stood on what used to be his bedroom door. She examined every aspect on his room. The trash can was full of tissues and tears, while the floor had bits of his door that she blew up not too long ago. She then looked at Marco. He still covered himself from the outside world, filling himself with a dark, empty void in his bed.

"Marco?" Star said to him. "Can I come in?"

His only response was grunting.

"So, would that be a 'Yes, Star, I don't mind,' or would it be a 'Yes, please, I need you right now'?"

He continued to grunt at her.

"I'll take it as a simple yes, then."

Star walked towards his bed and sat on one of the sides. Knowing this, Marco refused to look at her, or anything for that matter.

"Marco," Star said, resting her hand on his shoulder, "you might be trying to hide, but I already know it."

Marco was still grunting.

"Look, I understand how you feel right now. Really, I do."

Finally, Marco replied, "You don't and you can't. No one else can."

"I can, Marco. I know how close you two were. You were her knight in shining armor in her eyes. Heck, I remembered how much you talked about kissing her. You always said you loved the aftertaste."

Marco let out a weak laugh and got his back off the bed. He then turned around and looked at Star's face.

"I do remember saying that," Marco said with a little smile. "But that was the past..."

He looked away from her again. Safe to say the break-up between him and his longtime crush was still haunting him.

"When I was at school for those couple of days," Marco continued, "all of Jackie's girlfriends told me that she didn't want to see me. Janna included, out of all people. Star, it's over for me. I just wanna fall off the face of the earth."

"I get it, Marco," Star answered. "Jackie was the reason you couldn't concentrate. But can't you see that me and your parents have been trying to fix your pride."

"Heh, yeah," he replied, turning back around to face her, "but that thing's broken, isn't it?"

"That is not true. It just has a couple dents in it, that's all."

"Star, I'm a ghost to her. Just like how I was all those years. I know you know this."

"It doesn't matter. She moved on, as will you. After all, everyone else sees you. I see you."

"I suppose..."

"I promise you, everything's gonna be just fine. She may not be the one, but another girl will come into your life and fill that void. Heck, she even might be closer than you think."

Marco smiled at Star. It was all making sense to him. His crush may have not been what it turned out to be, but he was confident enough to just move on and continue living the life he wanted to live. And maybe he'll get lucky and find another girl to spend his love on, but for now, he's gonna fix his pride.

"You're right, Star," Marco told her. "I think I'm ready to move on now."

"Glad to hear that," she responded, "because, sheesh, you were really at a all time low."

"I really think you hang out with Janna too much."

"Maybe, but come on. You smell like the poop of the laser puppies."


	10. Scars To Your Beautiful

( song used for short: Alessia Cara - Scars To Your Beautiful )

It was early in the morning for another school day. Janna walked across the hallways of Echo Creek High School, hoping she would get to class unnoticed. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Everyone in school stared at her as she walked by the lockers and classrooms. This wasn't something she was used to, but she walked through it, with her best ability to avoid the comments about her.

"Woah, do you see this right now?"

"I don't believe this!"

"I didn't think she would wear something like that."

"She actually looks pretty cool like that!"

"Yeah, she looks better that way."

"Yo, Janna! That beanie rocks!"

"Looking good, Janna!"

The comments were nearly too much for her to handle. Overhearing all these conversations made her walk slightly faster and nearly made her cover her face with her beanie. Just as she was about to get to her class, however, she ended up bumping into none other than Star Butterfly.

"Oh, ho ho, Janna!" Star greeted her, looking at her with a surprised look. "Nice seeing you here this morning."

"Yeah, hey," Janna replied, chuckling nervously.

"I see you finally decided to wear that pink beanie I got you as a gift."

"Heh, yeah. I'm glad you got it for me."

"Of course! You did say you love pink."

"Yeah, so I gotta get to class now."

"Wait a minute, what?" Star stopped Janna from leaving by putting her hand on her shoulder. "But class doesn't even start 'till another 10 minutes."

"Did I say class? I meant I was gonna talk to one of my teachers about my grades."

"Grades? Come on, Janna. That's sound boring. Let's go do something fun before class starts!"

"And I would love to do that, but right now, I-"

Before she could finish her sentence, Marco stopped by and looked and Janna's pink beanie.

"Wow, Janna," Marco said to her. "Looks like Ms. Fight The Patriarchy decided to wear pink today."

"Marco, please shut up," Janna answered.

"What?" Marco responded, shrugging his shoulders. "It's only a compliment, Pinkie."

"Just hang out with your friends already, dude," she replied, aggravated by his smirk.

"Alright," he said smiling. "Later, guys."

As Marco left, Janna looked back at Star, showing her a face of concern.

"Y-you're not embarrassed by the gift I gave you?" she questioned her.

"Whaaaaaaaaat?" Janna answered. "No! No, it's just... it's..."

Star's concerned face couldn't help her act for much longer.

Janna sighed and said, "Yeah... I really am."

"Does this mean you don't like the gift?"

"No, I really do! I really mean it when I said I liked it when you gave me it not too long ago."

"So why would you be embarrassed by it if you like it so much?"

"I don't know... I mean, you know about the stereotypes thing."

"Yes, but, it still shouldn't matter. 'Cause I really like the hat I bought you."

"Heh, thanks. I really like it too."

Star looked at Janna in the face and placed her hand on her shoulder once again.

"You're beautiful just the way you are. Don't let anyone, not even the voices in your head, tell you otherwise."

"I will, your highness. Believe me."

Janna and Star hugged each other for a brief moment. After the hug, they looked at each other's faces, noticing their blushed cheeks and beady eyes. Both can't over the fact that they look so beautiful; especially Star, considering how great Janna looked in her pink beanie.

Once the moment was over, Star said, "Now come on! Let's grab some grub before school starts. Forgot to eat breakfast at the Diaz household."

"Right after we grab the money from Marco's wallet first, princess," Janna answered.


	11. Somebody Else

( song used for short: The 1975 - Somebody Else )

( episode based off short: Bon Bon the Birthday Clown )

Marco and Jackie stood outside his front door, just like how it was on Star's sleepover. The two were still in her dance outfits, but Marco took off his black coat, leaving him in his grey, buttoned shirt, and his dress pants. Being an awkward, nervous teenager he was, Marco and Jackie stood in silence for a while.

He broke his awkward silence by saying, "So yeah, I really had an awesome time with you tonight. I mean, I only wish I could just wish the whole graveyard thing... among other things, honestly..."

Jackie laughed and replied, "Yeah, dude. I mean, I kinda would be worried about Star if I were you. I can't imagine what she'd be going through right now."

"Jackie, I promise you. We're gonna fix this. I know it looks really, really bad, but Star's the strongest person I know. She'll get through it, and I'll be there to help her if needed."

"That's sweet of you."

"Heh, thanks."

"But yeah, I really enjoy our first date together. Might go down as one of the weirdest dates of all time, but I don't regret asking you out."

"Really? Well, um, that means a lot to me, really."

The two of them shared a quick laugh together, and then looked at each others eyes. They would soon proceed to kiss each other in the lips again, and bid to each other their farewells.

As soon as he saw her crush leave, he closed the front door and slid his back down the door. He then began to sit alone is his thoughts, in what was probably the craziest night in his life. On one hand, his night with Jackie was truly unexpected, but simply amazing. It truly made him felt like he can finally accept himself, with the help of his longtime crush. All that, and those late night skateboard rides, made him love her even more. Yet, on the other hand, he can't help but feel bad about how the night ended. Of course, seeing the blood moon again after his first kiss felt strange enough, but it felt rather disturbing hearing the sea captain's voice a few times. He did end up saving Star's life, along with the help of Jackie and Janna, but it did cost her the spellbook with Glossaryck in it. Needless to say, Marco continued to lie on the floor, with his back against the door, emotions drained from a long, long night.

As he stayed alone in his thoughts, he still heard the sea captain's voice said, "The Moon of Lovers..."

* * *

"Hey, Marco, Star Butterfly here. Just wanna know if you're having fun with Jackie at the school dance. Ok, well, as soon as the dance is over, call me back! Or if you're busy afterwards, that's totally fine too! Just call me, ok?"

*beep*

"Hey, Marco! Star again. Just wanna know whatcha up to right now. I mean, I know you're with Jackie and all, but I just wanna know if you guys are doing anything fun. Call me back when you can."

*beep*

"Marco, it's me. Star again. I wanna know if everything's alright with you guys. I mean, yeah, of course, everything's alright! Why wouldn't it be, right? Just call me when you get the chance."

*beep*

"Me again. Star Butterfly. I'm just letting you know that me and Janna are having a fun time! Glossaryck's here too! Raising a dead clown and stuff, yaaay! I wish you guys were here, but I'll admit, I wish I was the dance as well. Well, call me as soon as possible, alright?"

*beep*

"Marco Diaz. It's me again. Look... um... I know you're having a lot of fun with Jackie and all, and that's really cool, but I... I don't know what's... ugh... look. I... I can't stop thinking about you and Jackie all of sudden... I'm sorry... I don't know what I'm feeling right now... I... I think I have a crush on you... Please call back."

*beep*

* * *

Star cried in her bed for hours. The pain she felt that night left her extremely broken. All those fights, all of her hard work to make the shrine, everything. It was simply hard to forget. Wild memories began to flash in her head from that night: Marco. Jackie. Ludo. Bon Bon. Janna. Glossaryck. The spellbook. Marco. Jackie.

Still crying in her bed, she heard a knocking from somewhere in her room. She isn't sure who is, but she answered, "Please leave me alone. I just need some time to be alone."

The person coming downstairs responded, "I'm sorry, too. I don't do 'please leave me alone.'"

Star looked around and saw Janna, giving her a concerned face.

"Janna?" she questioned. "What are you doing here?"

"Decided to chill out in your room," Janna said back. "It really is big in here."

"I suppose..."

Star got out of her bed and walked her way to the balcony, all with tears running down her face. Seeing her friend's concern, Janna ended up following those trail of tears.

Once they got to the balcony, Janna said, "If it makes you feel better, the dead clown seance was a complete utter disaster. Can't really go wrong with that, right?"

"Almost everything can go wrong with that, Janna," she responded.

"Right... I guess..."

Star stood and looked outside in her balcony, just like she did when she was brought to the Blood Moon Ball. Janna, watching from afar, was unsure on what to do at this point.

"I'm not sure if I have anything now," Star said, trying to wipe tears out of her face. "I lost my spellbook, and who knows Ludo would do with that kind of power, I lost Glossaryck, who helped me so much with my wand, and I don't even know if I have Marco anymore. I just... just-"

Before she could ramble any more longer, Janna came from behind and hugged her gently. It was that movement that caused Star to burst into even more tears falling off the heart cheeks of her face. Janna even shed a tear during the hug.

"You're gonna be ok," Janna said to her. "Everything will be ok."

"I don't think it can," she responded.

"And it might not. But this isn't the strong Star me and Marco knows."

"Janna, really, I really need some time by myself."

Star gently pushed Janna out of the hug and continued to look outside, as the tears doesn't seem to be falling again.

"I'm really sorry," she told her. "I-I should've came with him to the dance. And now he's with Jackie. And now everything is starting to fade away."

Janna had nothing else to say at this point. Although she wish she could, Star really wants to be alone, with all her dark thoughts inside her head.

Before Janna could leave, however, Star turned around and asked her, "Do you mind if I could stay at your house for a few times. I just need to get away for a while and ease my mind."

Janna walked towards her and said, "I really don't mind at all."

Star collapsed on her shoulder and let the tears fall down into another person's shoulder once again.


	12. Brooklyn Baby

( song based off short: Lana Del Rey - Brooklyn Baby )

Janna lied her back on the trash bag of a bagel shop. As usual, she looked through her phone, looking through social media as usual, while eating a bag of her favorite potato chips. Star, on the other hand, did her usual strange thing and looked through the garbage in search of day-old bagels.

As Star was looking in the dumpster, Janna asked, "So, is this what you and Marco do every now and then?"

"Basically," Star replied. "It kinda started with these fortune cookies."

"Wait, fortune cookies told you to look into garbage?"

"Nah, I learned the hard way not to believe in those. The cookies tasted good, though."

"Oh, so you and Marco just go through the dumpster for somewhat-old food because of the taste of those fortune cookies?"

"Yeah, well, Marco never dives in with me, though. He just waits for me to come out with the bagels. But… that's in the past… he's with Jackie, now…"

"Oh… ok…"

Silence broke in for a while. Three weeks has passed since the high school dance/dead clown seance, and the relationship between Marco and Jackie still hasn't sinked in for Star. Janna tried to ease her mind a bit from her struggles, but she hesitated in taking any complications. She's still her mayor to her, however, and being her deputy mayor is a duty she accepted.

"So… did you have any luck finding those bagels, yet?" she questioned.

"Not yet," Star responded. "But we're not leaving until we get them."

"Alright, take your time," she said with a smile.

Both of them gave each other a thumbs up, and Star closed the lid to the dumpster afterwards. As Janna went back to looking through her phone again, it came to her attention that nothing new showed up on social media again. She then decided to play some music while the time passes. So she opened up her music app and put on her favorite song, continuing to finish her favorite chips.

A few minutes into the song, Star peeped out of the dumpster to hear what beautiful music is playing from a distance. She then saw Janna, nearly passed out from the chips. Her eyes keep trying to shut, but she remained quite awake, thanks to her music on full blast. Because of this, Star soon realized it was Janna playing that awesome song through her phone. Following the beat of the music, she crawled out of the garbage and sat close to Janna.

"Janna, you awake right now?" Star said to her.

"Huh? Oh yeah," she answered, yawning for a bit. "I'm just a little tired, that's all."

"Oh, well, I'm close to finding the bagels, so you'll get enough sleep once we get back home."

"Coolio. Can't wait to sleep in Marco's bed."

"Another one with the 'Messing with Marco' counter, huh?"

"No doubt about it."

"So, I've been meaning to ask, what song are you playing right now?

"Oh, this?" Janna pointed at her phone. "It's a song played by my favorite artist ever."

"Wait, this artist sings and paints at the same time?"

"No, Star. There's two types of artists. This one sings."

"Oh, that makes better sense."

"Yeah, well, this song is my all-time favorite."

"I can totally see why. Got a nice, relaxing beat, vocals are amazing, it's really good."

"Thanks. It's called 'Brooklyn Baby' by Lana Del Rey."

"What a cool song by a cool name."

"Yeah, she's the full embodiment of cool."

The two of them laughed for a bit and then stared at each other for a bit. They were both focused on their cheeks, however, for they both had a few dirt marks and garbage stains on them.

"Uh, Janna?" Star asked. "You got something on your cheeks."

"Ummm, you kinda got them too," Janna said back.

Without hesitation, both Star and Janna did their best to wipe away the marks from their cheeks. Once they removed all of it, their hands were somehow locked into each other's cheeks. Bothe were clueless of their actions, yet both of their cheeks went from stained to red in a matter of seconds.

As hard as Janna wanted to keep her hands on her soft, heart-shaped cheeks, she broke up those frozen locks on Star's cheeks. The courses of action still were a blur for the both of them. Of course, they're best friends, and they've been hanging out more, now that Marco and Jackie are dating, but neither Janna nor Star could really understand the relationship between these two.

"Well," Janna said, with her cheeks still red, "I think you should continue your dumpster diving for the bagels."

"Heh, right," she responded. "Diving time."

Star walked back to the garbage and pulls the lid up. Before she can continue, however, Janna gives out another thumbs up for her, and Star did the same thing. And so, the two of them continued to do their thing, despite their hands on their cheeks, while Janna's favorite song continues to be on repeat, playing as loud as the phone speakers could.


	13. Slow Burn

( song used for short: Crywolf - Slow Burn )

( episode based off short: Raid the Cave )

It was 2 in the morning. Around this time, Star had finished writing a few spells she knew from the top of her head into her notebook of spells. Safe to say the progress went well, for the notebook is about a quarter finished from the 80 sheets of the college-ruled book. Granted, it is a recreation of all her family history and all the greatest and darkest spells deep inside the pages, but at the very moment, it's a far cry of the finished product.

She did manage to put the spying spell in one of her pages.

The rebel princess decided to take a break after realizing how late it was once again. Even before she skipped the dance for a dead seance, which lead to her losing her book in the first place, Star hasn't been getting much sleep. Something's been keeping her awake for days, and she can't fathom to put her finger on what it was. Luckily, a cold drink from the fridge would usually put her to sleep.

As she exited her room and walked through the hallways of the Diaz house, she heard voices coming through one of the doors. She soon realized it was Marco's laugh coming out of his room. Noticing how Marco's door was just a tad bit open, she peeked inside the crack to see what was happening. Her results were somewhat unpleasant. Marco was on his laptop having a video call with Jackie Lynn Thomas. He was also trying to do homework as well, judging by the textbooks and paper she observed.

Star was unsure what to make from this conversation, since her lack of sleep was kinda affecting her. She was able to make parts of what they were talking about, such as how was their day, and the occasional joke or two. To her surprise as well, she heard Jackie showing a level of concern for her. Marco understood her concern and reassured her that things would be ok for her and for them. Jackie was relieved from his words and acknowledges how much of a sweetheart he was.

Star stopped spying at Marco once a few more minutes passed by. She sat down on the soft, fabricated floor, leaning her back on the wall instead of the creaked door. And then it hit her. She was too caught up thinking about her spellbook, she ended up forgetting that Marco finally ended up with his longtime crush. She's still unaware of her feelings for the whole situation. Yeah, Marco loves Jackie, and surely, Jackie loves Marco back, but what would it mean for Star and Marco as the days go by? Regardless, their friendship feels more strained than usual. Parts of her are gone, for better or for worse, but this strange power makes her feel she's about to break, because she knows this isn't how it should be.

Nevertheless, he's still here with her.

At Star's best, she caught another peek for about a minute, grabbed a drink to put her to sleep, and went back to bed, having high hopes for herself, and the person she loves.


	14. Odd Future

( song used for short: Jahkoy - Odd Future )

( episode used for short: Just Friends )

Hours went by after the Love Sentence concert. For Marco Diaz, it was the best hours of his life. His favorite band, along with his best friend and his girlfriend, was a perfect combination for an amazing night. Heck, he even kissed Jackie Lynn Thomas twice. Everything worked out for everybody.

Well, at least that's what he thought.

Him and Jackie walked out of the concert once it ended, as well as everyone else. Jackie carried her skateboard in one arm, getting praises from her Love Sentence skateboard and t-shirt. The other arm was wrapped around her boyfriend, keeping his hands cozy in the moderately cold weather inside the pockets of his red hoodie. At some point, they heard murmurs about a broken Love Sentence billboard, but they did their best to ignore it, despite the fact that they saw it themselves.

"Ok, I got admit," Jackie said as they were walking, "I just can't decide which was more fun. The time we ditched the dance to go on a date together, or this."

"Uhhhhh, this ten-fold!" Marco shouted in glee.

They both shared a laugh together.

"You're probably right," Jackie announced. "I really had a blast."

"Yeah," Marco agreed. "I'm kinda bummed out Star left early."

"I was thinking the same thing. I mean, she does like Love Sentence, does she?"

"Of course she does! She terribly hung up a Love Sentence poster by herself, she went nuts when I bought us Love Sentence toothbrushes, and completely went head over heels when she bought the tickets."

"Yeah, she was pretty excited when we were on the way over. Especially with the shirts she made herself. They were really awesome."

"I'm kinda hoping she makes me another. Mines was reaaaaaaally too tight. Not to mention it was ripped."

Marco's mind drifted off for a bit. During that time, he observed the broken billboard as he was walking with Jackie. His reasoning was questionable, but he felt as if a spell was casted, causing the billboard to be torn in pieces. He only knew at least one person who would do that.

Jackie looked at him and said, "Everything ok, dude?"

"Yeah," Marco responded with an obvious lie. "Well, I don't know. I kinda thought I got caught up in the moment there. I'm pretty sure Star was trying to tell me something, but she was holding back."

"Any chance you remember what she said?"

"No... I kinda think I got too caught up in the moment... It's just weird how she would go down to front row. She didn't go all fangirly when I came to see her. And sweat? Not even with Love Sentence's, would I want on my face."

"Well, whatever it is, I'm sure she'll tell you soon enough. I mean, she _is_ your roommate and your best friend."

"Yeah, I mean, we do try to tell everything about each other. Maybe once I get home, I'll know."

"Speaking of which, do you wanna grab some ice cream right now? There should be one open at this moment, and I'm in such a craving for cookies and cream."

"Thanks, but I think I'm worn out for the night. It's pretty late too."

"Ok. I'll take you home then."

After minutes of walking, Jackie finally placed her custom-made Love Sentence skateboard down, letting her and Marco get on board. Just like last time, Marco was in front, and Jackie held onto him, moving the skateboard on the way to his place.


	15. Me and Your Mama

( song used for short: Childish Gambino - Me and Your Mama )

Star peeked out of Marco's door yet another time. As expected, he is deep in sleep, wearing just his grey shirt and boxers and cuddling his stuffed bunny. All according to plan, she thought to herself.

Squeezing into his room, she got her stealth on and took gentle taps across the floor. It wasn't until the 5th step when she heard crunch noises out of nowhere. She checked all over the floor to see where it came from, but it definitely wasn't any chips or anything that could've made a crunch noise. Instead, she kept hearing to find where the noise came from, only to realize it's coming out of Marco's closet. Slightly confused, she's only glad it didn't wake up the sleeping Diaz.

Opening the closet, she sees where the ruckus is coming from: Janna Ordonia eating a bag of chips with her phone out. Although they did stare at each other for a decent amount of time, none were surprised from this interaction, for this meeting they were gonna have was already initiated by Janna herself. Once they stopped looking at each other in silence, Janna stuffed her face with a few more chips and let the princess into the closet. She proceeded to close the closet door afterwards.

"Alright, so we're here now," Star said in an awkward tone.

"Yeaaaaaaaah," Janna replied, acting weirder than usual, "we areeeeeeeeee..."

"How long have you been waiting here?"

"Even since I wrote that note in your yearbook."

"Ok... but were you just eating chips and stuff the whole time here?"

"That's right. Kinda boring, but at least I snuck into Marco's laptop a few times when he ain't looking."

Star giggled for a while, knowing how Janna loves to mess with Marco's life.

"So," Star asked, "Marco's end-of-school party is this weekend."

"Oh yeah," Janna remembered. "Almost forgot about that."

"You plan on coming over? I think there's gonna be a lot of food over there."

"I'm gonna have to pass up that offer."

"Really? How come?"

"Because I'm pretty sure there's gonna be a horror movie marathon on TV around that time. I practically made a deal with the devil that I won't miss it."

"Oh, sounds pretty fun."

"Star, predicting how actors fake die is always fun."

The two of them shared a laugh together, but hoped they didn't woke up Marco during the process.

"Wellllllllll," Star said, "if there's nothing else to talk about in this short meeting, I think I'm gonna head back to sleep now."

"Star, wait!" Janna quietly yelled, grabbing her hand before she could exit out Marco's closet. "We haven't finished yet."

"You sure? I thought we were just gonna have the usual small talk, like every other time you come over here."

"That's not really why I called this meeting..."

"Ok... so why is it you called me here in Marco's closet then?"

Star closed the closet door and started to listen to every word.

"The reason I wanted you here," Janna said as her voice softened more and more, "is because I wanted to come out of the closet."

Lost, Star responded, "But I was about to come out of the closet. Now you wanna come out of the closet? Why don't we come out together?"

"No, Star, that was an expression."

"Ohhhhhhhhh... I don't get it."

"Star... 'coming out of the closet' is an expression that means 'I'm gay.'"

"Ohhhhhhhhhhh... wait, what?"

"Yeah, what I'm trying to say is I like women."

"But what about Bernardo? Or nineteenth-century poet John Keats?"

"Bernardo was an one-time disaster. Never again. As for my crush, that's a far cry."

Janna held Star's hands once again, trying to look at Star straight at her eyes.

"After all," she continued, "you know I love to fight the patriarchy."

"You're right," Star answered.

"Can't remember a time when I was wrong, Starlight."

Star giggled again, with her hands still gripped by Janna's. It was at that moment when Janna done something she isn't used to do: think about her actions. She finally had the courage to admit to one of her friends that she's gay. Yet she didn't admit the other reason why she called her friend here: her true crush, Star Butterfly. Which made her question herself. Does she tell her? Does she try to kiss her? Does she play it off and get out of Marco's closet? She was unsure of it all.

Soon, she noticed Star starting to feel very sleepy. It was a long day from yearbook signing and the latter for her, so she started to yawn and yawn, with her eyes closing and opening more frequently.

"I sure am getting tired," she told Janna.

"Yeah, I can tell," Janna replied.

"You don't mind if I sleep on your shoulder, right?" she questioned.

Nervously blushing, Janna said, "Uhhhh... yeah... I don't see why not."

"Thanks, Janna Banana," she thanked her, yawning.

Star then began to collapse on Janna, closing her eyes and beginning to sleep. While she was completely speechless, Janna was glad she had this special moment. She was still bothered she didn't get to say what she wanted to say, especially since Star agreed to meet her at this very location. Still, she took one step closer with her relationship with Star, and she can only hope it only grows bigger and stronger.

She can only hope a demon can give her a Nasaya curse so she can get it over with.

Now getting tired, Janna rested her head on a pile of Marco's hoodies with Star still sleeping on her, and the two of them spent the rest of the night sleeping in Marco's closet.


	16. The Chase

( song used for short: SOHN - The Chase )

[ art/writing trade with starydraws on tumblr ]

A mysterious portal opened up in the forest of certain death. It didn't take long for a mysterious figure to step out from it. The figure looked at his surroundings for a bit, and closed the portal from which he came. It may not be the exact place he wanted to be, but he knows where he's heading.

One small thing: Marco Diaz arrived in Mewni, only to arrive here of all places.

Landing here made him reconsidered his poor choice of coming here unarmed and unprotected. It didn't matter nonetheless. He wasn't going to look back this time. After all these times of hesitating, he wasn't going to let anything stop him. Even if a certain forest kills him.

He started looking for a way out of here. Familiar monsters from his first time around the forest of certain death tried to attack him before, but he stayed vigilant. He also bumped into some weird house during the encounter, but he didn't dare step foot into it. This went on for hours. Marco tried everything to find a way to the castle. Unfortunately, the Maps and Compass apps on his phone wasn't good enough to navigate the lands of Mewni. As strong as he can be, he doubted he can ever escape this hell except giving up and going back home.

Soon, he started to make a base and a campfire in the forest, free from monsters or other dangerous things that could harm him. Once he started the fire, he sat down quietly with the thoughts dancing around his head. The current situation he was in almost reminded him of how he was chasing Hekapoos for years. There were a few blurs he had from that whole fiasco, but he still remembered why he did it: for Star. It was during that wild chase that coming back to Star was all he could ever think about. That is, until a couple more years where she was an afterthought and seeing thousands of Hekapoos crowded his head.

Rest assured, Star wasn't going to be an afterthought of his ever again.

He then looked back to his phone again. He looked through all the photos the two of them shared together. It was always a constant reminder of how many memories they've shared every waking minute. Like when he showed her pho restaurants, carnivals, and arcades. More importantly, he realized how he has more pictures of them more than anyone else in his life. More than the other exchange students, more than Jackie, even more than his own family. The pain of missing her was hurting him so badly, and the pictures were the only thing keeping him comfort in this unforgiving forest.

Hours continue to pass by. He grows more tired every time he looks at another picture of him and Star. He knows he'll find her sooner or later, but for the time being, he has to take a break for himself. So for the time being, he took a nap on the ground, and prayed that he'll be able to find a way to get back to Star. Either that, or not get eaten by a monster out here. Nevertheless, he went to sleep with tears running down his face.


	17. Blessed

( song used for short: Daniel Caesar - Blessed )

[ based off a comic made by starydraws on Tumblr ]

Today felt like the worst day of Marcia's life.

She woke up super late, couldn't turn her homework in because the laser puppies burned them, and worst of all, she fell in front of Jackson Thomas when she was walking down the fall hall, with everyone watching.

She never felt this embarrassed in her life. Sure, she had her moments from time to time, but she felt like this day ruined her life. She really loved Jackson, but she feared she ruined any chances of them being together. And after that fiasco she had today, she felt his feelings were in jeopardy.

Comet hated to see her like this. It was clear how she had a crush on Jackson ever since they were very little. All she ever wanted to do is to be with her, even after countless times of embarrassing moments. Not to mention her 20-something step plan she has. He just wanted something to ease her mind from today.

That's when he had a brilliant idea.

* * *

"Why am I covering my eyes again?"

That's what Marcia asked Comet with her eyes closed, as they are in his room, much to his plans.

"It's a surprise," Comet answered. "I did say I wanted to show you something, so."

"Well, you did, but I just wanna be by myself right now. I do appreciate your concern."

"Just trust me on this, Marcia. You're gonna love this, I promise you."

"Alright, I trust you on this."

As she kept her eyes closed, Comet opened up a portal with his dimensional scissors. She feared what would happen once she heard the sound of clippings.

"Did you just open a portal with your dimensional scissors?" Marcia questioned with her eyes still closed.

"Uhhhhhhhhh, yesssssssssss?" he replied nervously, knowing he couldn't lie to her.

"Comet, I swear, if you lead me into another deadly, dangerous place again..."

"No, this place is totally different this time! Honest!"

"Comet..."

"Please, Marcia. I really want to cheer you up."

"I'm hoping you can keep your word."

Comet began to guide Marcia into portal as she continued to cover her eyes. Once they got into the dimension he chose, he told her, "Okay. You can look now."

Once the hands were done covering her eyesight, she was instantly speechless at the sight she had seen. What she had seen was a sky full of stars and moons, shining as bright as diamonds. She smiled with joy as she continued to look. Comet did the same thing.

"Comet," she said. "This... looks so amazing!"

"I know, right?" he responded confidently. "I'd always come here with Prince Pony Head and some other friends if we ever need to talk or mess around."

"Well, I gotta say, this is officially one of the coolest things I've seen."

"So, does that mean you're all better now?"

"I think so. Tomorrow will be a better day, I know that. Perhaps Jackson Thomas and I would able to talk to each other."

"Really glad to hear that."

Unexpectedly, Marcia gave Comet a big hug. The hug made his heart skip a beat for a minute. Nevertheless, his mission was accomplished, so he wrapped his arms around her, returning the favor.

"You know," she said while holding on to him, "I never know how you always do it, but you always somehow cheer me up every time."

"You can't forget that I'm a magical prince from another dimension," he replied.

"Yeah, yeah. Thank you, Comet."

"Anytime, Marcia."

"I'm blesses to be stuck with you."


	18. Morning After

( song based off short: dvsn- Morning After )

Start of the morning. Marco woke up from his bed, refreshed from his slumber. And why wouldn't he be? Star's been staying at his place over the weekend once summer began and Toffee was, for sure, defeated. Although she wished she could stay longer, the damage Toffee has done cannot allow her to stay for longer. But they didn't mind, for they were glad they hung out, have some nachos, and all the other regular things they've always been doing.

Thing is, the weekend's over already. Star's already ready to leave on a Monday morning.

These mornings made Marco sick to his stomach. It was bad enough that Monday mornings were the worst, but Star having to go back to Mewni every beginning of the week was revolting. Even though it was important for her family, he didn't want to say goodbye to her over and over again. Not ever, really.

He got out of his room and saw Star out in the hallway. "Morning, Star," he greeted.

"Good morning, Marco," she replied while yawning.

"You seemed more tired than usual."

"Yeah, well, you know, bringing the stuff back to my place, kingdom duties, all that."

"Right, Monday mornings.."

"Uh-huh."

The two of them stare blankly away from each other. Things still ended up more awkward between them, ever since she confessed to him at his end-of-school party.

"Well, I should probably go now," she suggested.

"You sure you don't wanna have some cereal before you go?" he asked. "You know, your favorite?"

"I'm sure I'll be fine. Mewni needs me..."

"Can't it wait until tomorrow morning? Mewni, earth, all of it is safe."

"Afraid not..."

Star began to walk back into her room slowly.

"But you're usually the one to run away from your problems," Marco said.

"I thought I told you 'I was taking a break,'" Star corrected.

"Well, why not take an extended break?"

"Because I can't take a break in my situation. Besides, the kingdom should be-"

"But it's not about Mewni, is it?"

"Wha-? No. Marco, I-"

"Is it you? Is it me? Is it both of us?"

"Marco, don't say that..."

"Just tell me what it's gonna take for you to stay."

"I... can't. I'm really sorry."

Another silent pause. Neither of them can confess their true feelings, which makes it harder of either of them to stay at their place.

"I should get going now," Star spoke to break the silence.

"But, Star," he responded, "you ain't gotta do a thing. Can you please just stay?"

"I've told you a hundred times already. My parents won't allow me."

"Alright then."

"You got your own scissors, so if you wanna see me, you can always come over."

"Yeah, but it ain't the same."

"Suppose so."

"I really gotta know, though, if you don't wanna come to Mewni, you should always come back here."

"Thanks."

"You're always the one I want to stay."

Star blushed and giggled for a bit. It wasn't a full-out confession to her, but it was a step towards being more than just friends. Tadpole steps, she thought. In the end, they're bound to see each other for many more mornings.

As Star left the hallway, Marco said to herself, "Guess confessing is still a work in progress."


	19. Nuh Time Tek Time

( song based off short: dvsn - Nuh Time / Tek Time )

( episode based off short : Sophomore Slump )

First day of sophomore year and Jackie ends up later than usual. It didn't matter to her anyways, because it still was somewhat good to be back at Echo Creek Academy, to start a new chapter in her life.

Well, more or less.

All this summer, she thought that Marco would take the time to take care of her. Have fun in the sun, like how it was at the pier. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. Sure, she talked to him a few times when he was over at Mewni, but it wasn't the same. Heck, nothing really was the same ever since the party where Star confessed that she had a crush on him. And it practically took her all summer to figure that out.

Despite her lost love, she still remembered what she said when she broke up with Marco. And most likely, he's happy over there in Mewni. Because he's back on Star's side, where he always belong ever since she came here. So she needs to be happy as well, for another chapter has yet to be written.

And yet, those words still stuck by her side...

"Jackie, you're my best friend."

* * *

The first day of school was just like any other normal first day. New and returning students were navigating to their class. Constant chatter and locker opening. Frequent eye contact at their cell phones. Heck, it almost felt too normal, now that Star and Marco are gone from Echo Creek. Granted, Star didn't come around here until the middle of the second month, but people still remember how Marco embarrassed himself every first day of school. The helmet at the shower, the dislocated shoulder, the swollen tongue. That laughter has faded away.

Jackie was one of those people, as she sat by herself at the lunch table with a slice of mystery pizza. All this normal had made her uncomfortable. Everything felt super lame to her, for there was no magic and no embarrassing moment to laugh at. No one was better than Star and Marco. No one.

"A shame there's no action going on, Wacky Jackie."

She turned and saw that Janna was walking right next to her, sitting with her own slice of mystery pizza.

"Nice to see you too, Janna," she responded, drinking her soda.

"Quite the welcoming party around here. Nothing crazy has happened all this morning. Well, not yet anyways. Got this plan to prank the fresh meat."

Jackie just looked through her phone while eating her mystery slice.

"No comment, huh? Guess you wanna listen. so-"

"I'm confused."

"What?"

"I should be happy. I should be happy for him. But a part of me couldn't stand to leave him. Why am I like this?"

"Jackie..."

"I mean... I hated when it felt like he didn't have time for me. Even before summer, he was always busy with Star. Not that I'm mad about it. I'm really happy for them, 'cause they were always happy when they stood with each other, but... now summer's over and I just feel a bit empty inside."

Janna laid her hand on Jackie's shoulder and gave her a tissue box that she decorated with skulls and snakes.

"If it makes you feel better," Janna said to her, "that summer sucked. I mean, the only good thing that happened is when Star called me when she was haunted by Glossaryck."

Jackie giggled and replied, "Yeah, I still remember that."

"Now, don't get your spirits down. We still have all school year to do all crazy stuff, like how we always do. Besides, you're gonna find someone who's gonna take their time with you. Maybe she's creeping up on your shoulder right now."

She laughed again, as Janna laughed along with her.

"You're right, Janna. This year is gonna be amazing, and you and I both know it."

"And you can thank me after I tell you my prank on the fresh meat."


	20. Crisp

( song used for short: Lou Val - Crisp )

( episode used for short: Booth Buddies )

 **Author's Note: I haven't been on here for forever, jesus.**

Once Marco dropped off Kelly, he headed straight to the castle. He parked Nachos near the gates and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

"Well, I assume Hekapoo's gonna come and pick you up, so I guess this is goodbye again," he said to Nachos. "Always fun taking you on a ride."

The dragoncycle replied to him with some low snarls and snorts.

As Marco walked to the gates of the castle, he stopped and paused for a brief minute. The kiss in the photo booth still ran through his mind. It was quite possibly the stupidest night he had, but it was quite possibly the best night he had. Either way, it happened, and there's nothing he can do but think about it for every waking second.

Nachos ultimately notices it and cycled over to Marco, rubbing his head to his arm.

He sighed and told him, "I suppose I can stay here a bit longer. I could use someone to talk to."

He lied his back on the dragoncycle's back, staring into Mewni's illustrious skies.

"I... kissed Star," Marco confessed. "I got in a photo booth with her, and then took photos with her under my $650, but then this weird short guy trapped us in there and made us believe we were in a magical photo booth, which led to me confessing my feelings for her, and once we took the last few pictures, I went to kiss her. After that, I was speechless, and she was speechless, and then the short guy freed us and told us the booth wasn't magical and send us back to the wedding, and... I have no idea where to go from here."

Nachos responded with a snort.

"I mean, I liked the kiss, and I do like Star, but... this feels different. Things were definitely different when she left after she confessed that she had a crush on me, but this? Far more different. Nachos, I'm her squire! A knight in training armor! And I did this regrettable life decision. I don't even think I can look at her straight in the eye anymore."

Nachos answered with a low growl.

"Oh, man. I'm not even sure on what to say to Tom. He's Star's boyfriend. And even though we're friends and how much he changed over the past few months, he still got his anger issues. I don't know, but maybe he can take it well? Then again, he's gonna find out eventually. It's always best to tell the truth. I'll see if I can talk to Star, so we can talk to Tom together. It'll be better to say it together, other than Tom being mad at either one of us."

Nachos replied with another snort.

"I knew Kelly took you on a joyride! Eh, it doesn't really matter. You seem alright, and that's all that matters to me."

Marco stared into the Mewni stars for a bit while longer before getting off the dragoncycle's back.

"Thanks for listening to me, Nachos. It sure feels better talking to someone that has ears."

He smiled back and growled in joy. Marco waved to him a good night and took the long walk back to his room in the castle.


End file.
